Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers this week defended a proposal to change the term “mother” to “inseminated person” under Wisconsin state law.The ContextEvers called for more inclusive and gender-neutral language in his state budget proposal covering the fiscal period from 2025 to 2027.The proposal, which was first introduced last week, includes a section on “gender neutral terminology” that seeks to change the terms “mother” and “father” to “person” and “spouse,” according to a CBS affiliate in Wisconsin.But Republicans in the state were particularly rankled by a proposal to change the term “mother” to “inseminated person” in a section regarding in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedures done in Wisconsin. Among other things, critics said Evers, a Democrat, is “woke virtue signaling” and that the proposal makes Wisconsin a “national embarrassment.”
Stock image of a pregnant woman with her hands on her belly. Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers attends a rally to kick off Democratic vice presidential nominee, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s “Driving Forward” Blue Wall Bus…
Stock image of a pregnant woman with her hands on her belly. Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers attends a rally to kick off Democratic vice presidential nominee, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s “Driving Forward” Blue Wall Bus Tour at the KI convention center on October 14, 2024, in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
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What To KnowEvers defended his proposal while speaking at an event in Wausau, Wisconsin, on Monday.”What we want is legal certainty that moms will be able to get the care they need,” he said. “That’s it, end of story.”The Wisconsin Democrat also accused Republicans of politicizing the proposal.”What the Republicans say is a lie, so of course, I’m pretty [pissed off] about that,” he said. “It gives people using IVF legal certainty. That’s it … moms are moms. Dads are dads. What we want is legal certainty.”Evers’ comments come as the Trump administration cracks down on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs across the country, which critics have described as an effort to scale back LGBTQ rights in the workplace and society writ large.President Donald Trump and his allies have taken aim at transgender rights in particular by seeking to ban transgender women from participating in women’s sports or using women’s restrooms and by barring transgender people from serving in the U.S. military.Trump also signed an executive order after taking office last month claiming that there are only two sexes: male and female.At least one federal judge has sharply pushed back on that characterization, telling the Justice Department in a case challenging Trump’s ban on transgender troops that the claim that there are only two sexes is “biologically incorrect.”Trump, for his part, has repeatedly called himself the “father of IVF” and recently signed another executive order that seeks to protect IVF access and “aggressively reduce out-of-pocket and health plan costs for such treatments.”The New York Times reported that the order does not change existing policy or mention Trump’s campaign pledge of making IVF treatment free. One fertility doctor in New York also said that while she backs Trump’s move to expand IVF access, executive action alone “is not going to fix the deep rooted issues that we have when it comes to fertility care access.”What People Are SayingRepublican State Representative Amanda Nedweski wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Monday: “If you believed moms are moms, and dads are dads, then there would be no need for this change. Apparently, Evers believes dads can be moms too.”Wisconsin State Assembly Speaker Robin Voss told FOX 11: “Once again our woke DEI-loving Governor reminds us just how liberal and out of touch today’s Democratic Party really is.”Voss also told reporters Evers’ proposal makes Wisconsin a “national embarrassment.”The Republican Governors Association said in a statement: “Tony Evers is either caving to the most radical elements of his party or he’s entirely asleep at the wheel as Democrat activists use his budget proposal to push an insane social agenda on Wisconsin.”SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, who oversees the Department of Government Efficiency, slammed Evers’ proposal, writing on X: “Hi Mom, I mean ‘inseminated person’. This is crazy!!”What Happens NextEvers’ budget proposal is currently being considered in the state Senate. It’s also unclear whether the Trump administration will push back if the budget proposal, which breaks with his executive actions seeking to clamp down on gender-neutral terminology, is signed into law.The president last week sparred with Maine Governor Janet Mills and threatened to withhold federal funding from her state if it doesn’t comply with his executive order prohibiting trans women from competing in women’s sports.Mills responded: “See you in court.”
